triptych
noun
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Triptych Has Greek Roots
A painted or carved triptych typically has three hinged panels, and the two outer panels can be folded in towards the central one. A literary or musical triptych generally consists of three closely related or contrasting themes or parts. Triptych derives from the Greek triptychos ("having three folds"), formed by combining tri- ("three") and ptychē ("fold" or "layer"). Although triptych originally described a specific type of Roman writing tablet that had three hinged sections, it is not surprising that the idea was generalized first to a type of painting, and then to anything composed of three parts.
Examples of triptych in a Sentence
Marcia Desanctis, Travel + Leisure, 19 Feb. 2025
The events of this season-opening triptych put a great strain on that, but Marvin doesn’t buckle.
—Keith Phipps, Vulture, 13 June 2024
Eureka Boundary-pushing Argentine auteur Lisandro Alonso weaves an ambitious triptych traveling across the Americas and across centuries to examine the experiences of Indigenous peoples in the aftermath of colonization.
—Carlos Aguilar, Los Angeles Times, 31 Dec. 2024
For many, this wall was the highlight of the show: Van Gogh had envisioned such a triptych in a letter to his brother, Theo.
—Amelia Nierenberg, New York Times, 20 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for triptych
Cite this Entry
“Triptych.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/triptych. Accessed 3 Mar. 2025.
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